1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to medical devices for blotting blood, and more particularly relates to blood blotting devices for blotting blood on fingertips.
2. Description of the Related Art
Diabetes afflicts millions of people throughout the United States. This number is projected to grow as the population lives longer and grows older.
There are several types of diabetes. The two main types of diabetes are Type 1 and Type 2. Type 1, formerly called juvenile on-set diabetes, typically occurs before 20 years of age. Individuals with Type 1 diabetes have a pancreas, the organ that secretes insulin, which is destroyed by auto-antibodies. That is why individuals with Type 1 diabetes always need insulin, either through an injection or through an insulin pump. The role of insulin is to move glucose from the bloodstream into muscle, fat and liver cells where it can be used as fuel. Sugar levels reach dangerous levels when insulin is not present.
Type 1 diabetics must continuously monitor glucose levels in order to ensure health. Blood glucose or finger stick testing is required on a daily basis, usually before and after all meals, upon waking if breakfast is not immediately available, and when going to bed. Without constant glucose monitoring, the diabetic has no idea how much insulin is needed to maintain a safe range of glucose in the blood. Failure to monitor blood glucose levels can result in diabetic comas and even death. Long term failure to maintain tight control of blood glucose levels leads to blindness, kidney failure and nerve disease or neuropathy which commonly leads to amputations.
Type 2 diabetes, often referred to as adult on-set diabetes, is usually diagnosed after the age of 35. However, each year nearly 4,000 children are diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, and children who develop Type 2 diabetes by age 9 typically require insulin by the time they reach age 18. The primary cause of Type 2 diabetes is a complex medical condition called “insulin resistance.” In the early stages of Type 2 diabetes, the individual has sufficient insulin in the body; it just does not work efficiently. Type 2 diabetes is often treated through diet, exercise, and oral medications, however, it is not uncommon for an individual with Type 2 diabetes to eventually need insulin, either with or without oral medications. Blood glucose or finger stick testing is also required on a daily basis when treating Type 2 diabetes.
Control and outcomes of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes is greatly improved in patients using home glucose meters to regularly measure their glucose levels. According to some medical protocols, Type I diabetics must test their blood glucose levels at least five times per day, and Type II diabetics must test their blood glucose levels at least twice a day. In some cases, blood glucose levels in diabetics fluctuate wildly, so that the blood must be tested every half hour. Typically, a blood glucose level test requires a patient to prick a fingertip for drawing blood. Unfortunately, the testing procedure is invasive and results in bleeding. This requires diabetic patients to frequently swab or blot the test site with a swab, tissue or other absorbent material to remove the blood present on the fingertip.
Diabetic patients are required to carry kits that contain testing equipment for measuring blood glucose levels. Extreme care must be taken to avoid contaminating the testing equipment. As such, after pricking the end of a fingertip and applying the blood drops to the testing equipment, the patient must obtain a swab or tissue to blot the blood present on the fingertip. If the blood is not properly disposed of, the blood may contaminate the testing equipment, create an unsanitary condition, or cause an unsightly stain on clothing.
There have been a number of attempts directed to providing blood collecting devices for use with blood glucose level testing equipment. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,830,170 to Whiteman et al. discloses a blood-blotting device that includes a sheet of base stock having a plurality of fingertip-sized recesses formed therein with an absorbent swab disposed within each of the recesses. The swabs are relaseably attached to the recesses so that the soiled swabs may be removed after use. Lines of perforations may be formed in the sheets of base stock, allowing the sheet of base stock to be divided into sections, with each section including at least one recess and a swab. A protective sheet is attached to the sheet of base stock to cover and protect the swabs. The protective sheet has perforations that correspond to perforations in the sheet of base stock so that each of the swabs remains sterile and hygienic, even if the device is divided into small sections.
One drawback of the Whiteman device is that once a swab is used and removed from the base stock, the swab must be thrown away. In many instances, diabetic patients have no access to a refuse container for holding the contaminated swab. In these instances, the diabetic patient may place the contaminated swab back inside the diabetic testing kit, which may cause the unsanitary conditions described above, or which may contaminate the testing equipment.
In spite of the above advances, there remains a need for more efficient, multiple-use blood-blotting devices that facilitate the steps associated with testing blood glucose levels, which minimize contamination of the kit and the testing equipment, which improve sanitary conditions, which reduce the likelihood of blood stains on clothes, and which are easy to use. There also remains a need for blood-blotting devices that cover contaminated sections of a blood absorbing pad while exposing only unused sections of a blood absorbing pad.